Freeburg Pianos

Authorized Perzina and Mason & Hamlin Dealer (828.697.0110)

World Masterwork SeriesPreserving the Musical Lineage of Franz Liszt

Performance by: Dr. John Cobb and Christopher Tavernier

Franz Liszt (1811-1886)

Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist.It was said by his contemporaries that he was the most technically advanced pianist of his age,

and in the 1840’s he was considered by someto be perhaps the greatest pianist of all time, even to this day.

A Lineage Production by: Freeburg Pianos

Performing Artists

Dr. John Cobb & Christopher TavernierMasterwork Lineage Series - August/September 2013

It is our pleasure and privilege to serve the Western Carolina Area. Freeburg Pianos provides

new and pre-owned pianos for sale and complete related services. For over thirty-five years,

Keith Freeburg (Registered Piano Technician with The Piano Technicians Guild) has been

serving piano students, teachers, concert artists, church and home musicians. His sensitivity

and passion for creating instruments that respond to individual needs has delighted thousands

of discerning musicians.

We are the Authorized

Perzina and Mason & Hamlin Dealer for

New Grand and Vertical Pianos

We are proud to offer the full lines of Perzina and Mason & Hamlin pianos. Our range of new

pianos are perfect for home musicians, churches, concert halls, universities, conservatories, and

other institutions. We also have a wide selection of quality pre-owned pianos.

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Freeburg PianosBlue Ridge Plaza

2314 Asheville Hwy, Hendersonville, NC 28791

PH: 828-697-0110

Welcome to the World Masterwork Series

We are going to take you on a spectacular musical journey through

Liszt’s brilliant compositional career. It begins with Etudes, or studies,

which were Liszt's earliest interest in life - he began writing them as a

child. His greatest etudes are the 12 Transcendental Etudes and 6

Paganini Etudes; we will have a selection of both. Paganini was the

world's greatest violinist, and is still a legend. He inspired Liszt to

become the world's greatest pianist, and these Etudes are based on

Paganini's music and also are a tribute to him. Liszt was also inspired

to become the nineteenth century's most influential and progressive

composer. In the process, he invented the Symphonic Poem, an

orchestral work which is based upon a story. Our performance

includes two of these works; pieces which Liszt wrote specifically for

the piano, and which he based upon religious subjects.

Liszt also wrote piano music in traditional forms, one of which will be

played. Among Liszt's many pioneering activities was the celebration

of ethnic music - he wrote the first book on the music of the Gypsies.

He transcribed five authentic Hungarian folk songs for piano, and

intended for the text to be read aloud.

“No composer ever arranged so much music for the piano.” Two

song arrangements will be performed before the final tribute. Liszt

was also prolific at creating original compositions based upon popular

operas. In the true Lisztian tradition, the program concludes with one

of the most spectacular of his sixty five operatic paraphrases, a

composition written for two pianos.

Freeburg Pianos has made this possible by bringing in two grand

pianos. These pianos will be tuned to the Equal Beating Victorian

Temperament… Through the music of Franz Liszt, we will restore the

“Lost Colors and Sounds” of the Romantic Period.

MUSICAL LINEAGE

Musical lineage is analogous to, but of course different from biological lineage. The analogy lies in the fact that we are all

largely formed by our early training and experiences. As we grow, the choices we make, or are made on our behalf when

we are younger, have a large impact on our development. In the case of music, this can have a lasting effect on the kind

of musicians we become, our particular set of skills, and how we teach the students who later come to us for training.

All piano teachers have a certain amount of training behind them. The teacher or teachers they have studied with

constitute their musical lineage, although often that concept is not stressed until the highest level of advancement has

been achieved. Sometimes pianists avoid that kind of thinking, particularly if they are rugged individualists who are mostly

self-taught. Sometimes a pianist will limit the concept to naming his or her major teacher, who may be highly respected in

the field. Yet in the bio of an extraordinary performer, we almost always see a number of such teachers listed, implying at

least some influence from each and every one of those great names. In a sense, the more great names, the better! This is

justified by the argument that if we take what we can from a range of great artists, we can better assemble our own

individual style. There is indeed truth in this, but it is equally true that working primarily within a particular musical

lineage conveys great benefits, particularly if that lineage has one or more musical immortals in it.

An obvious benefit is in PR value. That has nothing to do with music, true, but it has a lot to do with people’s interest

in hearing you play, or in becoming your student. And although it makes good PR, it is not a false value, because a lot

of the tangible and intangible musical traits of the lineage are being expressed when you perform or teach. You cannot

help having been formed by these influences, and you cannot help passing them on in many subtle ways. There are a

number of wonderful musical lineages that many pianists can claim. The majority of them probably extend back three

“generations” to Franz Liszt or Theodor Leschetizky, the two most popular master teachers of the Nineteenth Century.

Their teaching styles were quite different, as were there accomplishments, personalities and musical philosophies,

and their students inevitably reflected these differences and passed them on, colored of course by the prisms of

their own personalities.

One prominent example the influence of lineage is the late, great Van Cliburn. His mother, Rildia Bee O’Bryan Cliburn,

was a professional pianist and teacher who had studied with Arthur Friedheim, a student of Franz Liszt and a great pianist

in her own right. Cliburn’s mother was his only teacher from early childhood until he departed for the Juilliard School

after graduating high school. During his growing up years, he often had a piano lesson every day, and thoroughly

absorbed the musical and technical approach of the Liszt/Friedheim/O’Bryan lineage. When Cliburn enrolled at Juilliard,

his new teacher was the famous pedagogue Rosina Lhevinne, who introduced him to the traditions of the Russian school

of pianism. But Cliburn never developed the brilliant, flashy “Juilliard sound.” His warm, richly colored piano tone became

a trademark of his unique style, which he credited to his mother’s teaching. Writers have commented on the similarity

between Cliburn’s “golden tone” and that of his lineage predecessor Arthur Friedheim. Listening to recordings of other

students of Liszt, one can sense, even through the antiquated sound production, a common tonal and musical influence

that must have come from the Master himself.

Franz Liszt, probably the most famous and influential musician of the Nineteenth Century, had the added advantage of

having studied with Carl Czerny when he was a boy. Czerny was well known as Beethoven’s student, protégé and friend.

Liszt’s father, Adam Liszt, knew what he was doing when he brought his son to Vienna to meet Beethoven and then

become Czerny’s student. That made young Liszt number three in the lineage of the most famous composer in Europe –

number four, if you count Beethoven’s sometime teacher, Joseph Haydn. Although his study with Czerny was relatively

brief, Liszt remained a close friend and supporter of Czerny throughout his life. He revered Beethoven as a supreme

genius and paid tribute to him by arranging many of his works (including all nine symphonies) for the piano. He performed

his piano works and later conducted many of Beethoven’s orchestral works as well. So Liszt’s disciples and students had

not only their teacher’s overwhelming gifts and accomplishments to inspire them, but also the great figure of Beethoven

looming over them all!

Liszt was famous for many things. He composed nonstop, constantly expanding his range. He arranged musical events

and sponsored deserving young musicians. He wrote articles, and was the co-author of the first biography of his friend

Chopin and also the first book on the music of the gypsies. But to the world of pianists and piano playing Liszt is most

interesting for his innovations and expansion of piano technique. By following the example of the astonishing violinist

Paganini when he was only 20, Liszt invented a new approach to playing the piano that transformed the keyboard into

an orchestra. He also worked obsessively at developing his own technique so that he could demonstrate and exploit

this new approach.

According to contemporary accounts, Liszt must have been the greatest pianist the world has known. True greatness is

hard to pass on, but in his later years when he was teaching the students flocking to him from Europe and America, Liszt

passed something on to them that made their playing and their teaching extremely potent. Even Martin Krause, who

showed up in Liszt’s very last years, was inspired to pass on Liszt’s philosophy of life and music, and – unbelievably – Liszt’s

piano technique – to his young student Claudio Arrau. Mr. Arrau was in turn inspired to measure up to Liszt’s example

during his long career as one of the world’s greatest concert pianists. And like Liszt, Arrau took students in his later years,

passing on the Liszt philosophy and piano technique, called by then the “Arrau Technique.” And like Liszt, Arrau didn’t

charge a penny for those valuable lessons.

Franz Liszt(1811-1886)

Franz Liszt was the son of a steward in the service of

the Esterhazy family, patrons of the great composer

Franz Joseph Haydn who died just two years before

Liszt was born. He came into the world in 1811 at

Raiding in Hungary.

Due to his startling musical gifts, at the age of 10 he

moved with his family to Vienna, where he took piano

lessons from Czerny (Beethoven’s student and close

friend) and composition lessons from Salieri. Two

years later, in 1823, he moved with his family, now

impoverished, to Paris, effectively ending his formal music training. Still a child, he rapidly

gained a reputation as the greatest pianist in Europe, and at the same time pursued his

serious compositional interests.

At age 19, Liszt came under the influence of the phenomenal violinist Paganini, and

he turned his attention to developing a similarly transcendental technique that could be

applied to the piano. When he was 24 he left Paris with his mistress, the Countess d’Agoult,

with whom he traveled widely for the next few years, his reputation as a pianist of astonishing

powers preceding him. Eventually he separated from the Countess d’Agoult, the mother of

his three children, and in 1848 he settled in Weimar as Director of Music. His companion at

the time (and for the next 20 years) was Princess Caroline Sayn-Wittgenstein, who also served

as his muse. She encouraged him to retire from his constant touring as a performer so that

he could fully realize his potential as a composer. In turning his attention to composition he

began advancing the language of music, and in the process invented a new form:

the Symphonic Poem.

In 1861 Liszt moved to Rome, where he took several orders of the priesthood and found

expression for his long-held religious leanings. From 1869 he returned regularly to Weimar,

where he had many pupils from around the world, and later accepted similar obligations in

Budapest, where he was regarded as a national hero. Liszt died in Bayreuth, Germany in 1886,

three years after the death of his son-in-law Richard Wagner. As a pianist Liszt had no equal,

and as a composer he indicated to the younger generations of musicians the new course that

music was to take.

Orchestral Music

Liszt’s symphonic poems met strong criticism from champions of “pure” music, who took

exception to his attempts to translate into musical terms the greatest works of literature.

The best known of the 13 symphonic poems are Les Preludes, based on Lamartine, and

Tasso and Mazeppa, both based on Lord Byron. He wrote two large symphonies: the Faust

Symphony, based on Goethe’s poetic drama, and the Dante Symphony, inspired by Dante’s

Divine Comedy. He also composed two piano concertos, and, among other works for piano

and orchestra, the chilling Totentanz (Dance of Death) and the Hungarian Fantasy.

Piano Music

Liszt wrote a great deal of music for the piano, some of which was later revised and

consequently exists in a number of versions. In addition to original piano music, he also

made many transcriptions of the works of other composers and wrote works based on

national themes.

At the age of 19 Liszt first heard the phenomenal violinist Paganini perform, and he

immediately set out to re-invent and expand piano technique, just as Paganini had done

for the violin. The result was a completely new sound and approach to the keyboard,

exemplified in his Paganini Etudes and Transcendental Etudes. The three collections of

Annees de Pelerinage (“Years of Pilgrimage”) stem from the years of travel with Marie d’Agoult,

the first volume evoking memories of Switzerland and the second containing impressions from

Italian art and literature. The final volume is from Liszt’s late period when he lived in Rome

and was heavily involved with the Church.

The 10 pieces in Harmonies Poetiques et Religieuses, written between 1845 and 1852, are

the product of the composer’s religious meditations. His religious inclinations are also evident

in the Legends of 1863, the first one representing Saint Francis of Assisi preaching to the birds

and the second one Saint Francis de Paolo walking on the waves. The remarkable Variations

on Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen, based on a theme from Bach’s B Minor Mass, mourns the

death of his elder daughter Blandine.

The Fantasia and Fugue on the letters of “Bach” (B flat, A, C, H, the last being B natural in

English notation) was written for organ and then transcribed for the piano. Liszt wrote one

piano sonata. Striking in its innovative form and expressive power, the Sonata stands as

one of the greatest monuments in piano literature.

The Hungarian Rhapsodies, comprising 19 pieces composed over many years, are based

on a form of art music familiar in Hungary and fostered by gypsy musicians. The Rapsodie

Espagnole makes use of the well-known la folia theme, used by Corelli and many other

Baroque composers, and the traditional jota aragonesa.

Transcriptions of his own orchestral and choral compositions include a famous piano version

of the first of his four Mephisto Waltzes, works reflective of the legends that had once dogged

Paganini concerning diabolical assistance in performance. Of the many other transcriptions for

piano, those of the nine Beethoven symphonies are among the most remarkable. There are

also a large number of operatic transcriptions and fantasies. These include the Norma Fantasy,

based on Bellini’s opera Norma, and a dozen or so based on the operas of his friend and

son-in-law Richard Wagner.

Sacred Choral Music

Although associated primarily with instrumental music, piano works and orchestral

symphonic poems, Liszt also wrote a quantity of sacred choral music. This ranges from his

patriotic oratorio The Legend of Saint Elisabeth to a whole range of liturgical and devotional

works in which he sought to reform Catholic Church music from the prevailing sentimentality

of the period. Perhaps the greatest of these is his oratorio Christus.

Organ Music

Although his skill as an organist could not quite match his abilities as a pianist, Liszt

nevertheless took a strong interest in the organ and contributed to the repertoire of the

instrument with works that make substantial demands on technical virtuosity.

Christopher Tavernier (b. 2000)Student of Dr. John Cobb

Christopher is thirteen years old and in the

seventh grade at Hendersonville Middle School

in Hendersonville, NC. He loves the arts, reading,

writing stories and playing chess and has two

brothers and one sister.

Christopher is a member of the “National Junior

Beta Club,” honoring his outstanding character

and academic achievement. In addition to being an

honors student and a part of the AIG (Academically

and Intellectually Gifted) program in Mathematics

and Reading, he was selected for the Duke University

Talent Identification Program, placing above the 95th

percentile nationally. Additionally,

Christopher was nominated to attend the National Young Scholars Program (NYSP). He is

planning to attend the Blue Ridge Early College Program as a ninth grader so he can continue to

develop his advanced academic studies and his music career under the guidance of Dr. Kevin

Ayesh.

Christopher’s first love is the piano, and he is now realizing his dream to be a great concert

pianist. He will be making his debut as the youngest concert pianist in North Carolina this Fall.

Christopher will be performing Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No.1 in B Flat Minor, Opus 23 as

the guest performing artist and will be opening the Tar River Philharmonic Orchestra’s Fall

Season this October 24th

at the “Dunn Center for the Performing Arts” at Wesleyan College in

Rocky Mount, North Carolina.

Christopher began his piano studies at the age of six. His favorite composer is Franz Liszt, and

he is proud to be a direct musical descendant of Liszt. Christopher’s repertoire contains many

works by Franz Liszt. His teacher Dr. Cobb, a semifinalist in the Third International Van Cliburn

Piano Competition, is an international performer and recording artist. Together they will

preserve the musical heritage of Franz Liszt.

Christopher is also a member of the Asheville

Area Piano Forum, where he enjoys performing

on a regular basis. Christopher continues to

perform in many other venues and competitions.

He has won many honors and awards and looks

forward to the day when he can play with the

New York Philharmonic. 828-707-2604

waller_ka@yahoo.com

Dr. John Cobb (b. 1942)Student of Claudio Arrau

Dr. John Cobb is an international performer and

recording artist known for his broad interpretive range

and technical command. The New York Times has

praised his “solid technique, bronze tone and flexibility

of interpretive style.” The Chicago Daily News

commented, “the vibrations that filled the hall were

less those of the piano than those of an exquisite

musical mind.” He has performed throughout the United States and Europe. In recent years

he has performed the piano works of the American master Samuel Barber, including his Piano

Concerto with the Asheville Symphony Orchestra. His solo repertoire also contains many of the

works of Franz Liszt, of whom he is a direct musical descendant through his teacher, pianist

Claudio Arrau, whose teacher was a pupil of Liszt.

Dr. Cobb continues to play a broad repertoire of chamber music and collaborates with artists

such as Joel Smirnoff, former first violinist with the Juilliard String Quartet and Jason Posnock,

Associate Music Director of the Brevard Institute and concertmaster of the

Asheville Symphony Orchestra.

John Cobb earned his Master of Music and Doctor of Music degrees in piano performance

from Northwestern University, where he also participated in master classes with the duo-piano

team Vronsky and Babin and also Paul Badura-Skoda and Vladimir Ashkenazy.

Dr. Cobb has taught at the Chicago City College, the University of Chicago, the State University

of New York and at Montreat College in North Carolina. He has presented workshops and

seminars at various schools and music centers throughout the U.S., including Florida State

University and California State University in Fresno. Dr. Cobb was artist-teacher at the

Adamant Summer Music School for pianists in Vermont for 15 seasons. For 12 years he was a

judge for the annual piano competition in New York City sponsored by the New York State

Council for the Arts, where he also served as a grant panelist.

He has also judged the Young Artists and Allied Arts competitions in Chicago, in which he won

first prizes in his student years. He maintains a teaching studio in Asheville and Hendersonville.

Dr. Cobb is the Artist-in-Residence for Freeburg Pianos and is currently taking students of all

ages including adults. 828-551-3810 jcobb227@bellsouth.net

Performance by Dr. John Cobb and Christopher TavernierBoth are direct musical descendants of Franz Liszt

Preserving the Musical Lineage ofFranz Liszt

Christopher’s first love is the piano, and he has a great desire to be a concert pianist.

He began his studies at the age of six. Franz Liszt is his all-time favorite composer.

Christopher’s repertoire contains many works by Liszt, of whom he is a direct musical

descendant through his teacher, Dr. John Cobb. Through their studies and performances

together they are “Preserving the Musical Lineage of Franz Liszt.”

Dr. Cobb, a semifinalist in the Third International Van Cliburn Piano Competition, is an

international performer and recording artist known for his broad interpretive range and

technical command. Dr. Cobb studied with Claudio Arrau, whose teacher was a pupil of

Franz Liszt. Throughout his career, Claudio Arrau (1903-1991) was renowned throughout

the world as one of the supreme keyboard masters of the century.

Franz Liszt was a student of Czerny, who in turn was a pupil of Ludwig van Beethoven.

Hence the musical lineage actually extends from Beethoven to Christopher Tavernier.

ProgramThe Musical Heritage of Franz Liszt

Transcendental Etudes

John Cobb: Transcendental Etude No.1 (“Preludio”)

Christopher Tavernier: Transcendental Etude No.2 (“Molto Vivace”)

John Cobb: Transcendental Etude No.3 (“Paysage”)

Christopher Tavernier: Transcendental Etude No.4 (“Mazeppa”)

The Paganini Influence

John Cobb: Paganini Etude No.2 in E-flat Major

Christopher Tavernier: Paganini Etude No.3 in G# minor, (La Campanella)

Christopher Tavernier and John Cobb:

Rachmaninoff: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Opus 43, for piano and orchestra

Arrangement for two pianos

Brief Intermission

The Symphonic Poem

John Cobb: Legend No.1 (“Saint Francis of Assisi Preaching to the Birds”)

Christopher Tavernier: Legend No.2 (“Saint Francis of Paola Walking on the Waves”)

Song Transcriptions

John Cobb: Liebesträume No.3 – Song by Liszt

Christopher Tavernier: Widmung (Dedication) – Song by Robert Schumann

Special Solo Works

John Cobb: Consolation No.3 in D Flat

Christopher Tavernier: Five Hungarian Folk Songs (With readings)

Operatic Paraphrase

Christopher Tavernier and John Cobb:

Reminiscences of Norma by Bellini, for two pianos

Claudio Arrau (1903-1991)Student of Martin Krause

Arrau was born in Chillán, Chile, the son of Carlos Arrau,

an ophthalmologist who died when Claudio was only a year

old, and Lucrecia León Bravo de Villalba, a piano teacher.

He belonged to an old, prominent family of Southern Chile.

His ancestor Lorenzo de Arrau, a Spanish engineer, was

sent to Chile by King Carlos III of Spain. Through his great-

grandmother, María del Carmen Daroch del Solar, Arrau

was a descendant of the Campbells of Glenorchy, a Scottish

noble family. Arrau was a child prodigy, giving his first concert at age five. When he was 6 he

auditioned in front of several congressmen and President Pedro Montt, who became so

impressed as to start arrangements for his future education.

At age 8 he was sent on a 10-year long grant from the Chilean government to study in

Germany, travelling in the company of his mother and sister Lucrecia. He was admitted at the

Stern Conservatory of Berlin where he eventually became a pupil of Martin Krause, who had

studied under Franz Liszt.

At the age of 11 he could play Liszt's Transcendental Etudes, considered to be one of the most

difficult sets of works ever written for the piano, and also Brahms's Paganini Variations.

Arrau's first recordings were made on Aeolian Duo-Art player piano music rolls. Krause died

after five years of teaching Arrau, who at fifteen was devastated at the loss of his mentor.

In 1935, Arrau performed the complete keyboard works of Johann Sebastian Bach in 12

recitals. In 1936, he played all the Mozart keyboard works. He then played complete Schubert

and Weber cycles. In 1938, for the first time ever, Arrau performed the complete Beethoven

piano sonatas and concertos in Mexico City. He repeated this in New York and London and

became one of the leading authorities on Beethoven in the 20th century.

In 1937, Arrau married the mezzo-soprano Ruth Schneider, and they had three children:

Carmen (1938–2006), Mario (1940–1988) and Christopher (b. 1959). In 1941 the Arrau

family left Germany and migrated to the United States, where they spent their remaining

years. He settled in New York City and later adopted dual U.S. and Chilean citizenships.

Claudio Arrau died in 1991, at the age of 88, in Mürzzuschlag, Austria, while attending the

festivities for the opening of the Johannes Brahms museum there.

Many have claimed that Arrau’s rich, weighty tone lent his interpretations an authoritative,

distinctive voice. Arrau was an inquiring and a deeply reflective interpreter. He said that he

felt it his duty to reveal the Soul within each great musical composition.

Arrau's attitude toward music was very serious. He preached fidelity to the score. Although

he often played with slower and more deliberate tempi from his middle age, Arrau had a

reputation for being a fabulous virtuoso early in his career. According to Joseph Horowitz in his

book Conversations with Arrau (1982), many critics felt that his overall approach became less

spontaneous and more reserved and introspective after the death of his mother, to whom he

was extremely close. Arrau had isolated himself for two weeks after his mother's death,

refusing to perform or to receive comfort from friends.

Franz Liszt (1811-1886)Student of Carl Czerny

Franz Liszt was the son of a steward in the service of the

Esterhazy family, patrons of the great composer Franz

Joseph Haydn, who died just two years before Liszt was

born. He came into the world in 1811 at Raiding in

Hungary. Due to his startling musical gifts, at the age of

10 he moved with his family to Vienna, where he took

piano lessons from Czerny (Beethoven’s student and close

friend) and composition lessons from Salieri. Two years

later, in 1823, he moved with his family, now impoverished, to Paris, effectively ending his

formal music training. Still a child, he rapidly gained a reputation as the greatest pianist in

Europe, and at the same time pursued his serious compositional interests. At age 19, Liszt

became influenced by the phenomenal violinist Paganini, and he turned his attention to

developing a similarly transcendental technique that could be applied to the piano. When he

was 24 he left Paris with his mistress, the Countess d’Agoult, with whom he traveled widely for

the next few years, his reputation as a pianist of astonishing powers preceding him. Eventually

he separated from the Countess d’Agoult, who had become the mother of his three children,

and in 1848 he settled in Weimar as Director of Music. His companion at the time (and for the

next 20 years) was Princess Caroline Sayn-Wittgenstein, who also served as his muse. She

encouraged him to retire from his constant touring as a performer so that he could fully realize

his potential as a composer. In turning his attention to composition he began advancing the

language of music, and in the process invented a new form: the Symphonic Poem.

In 1861 Liszt moved to Rome, where he took several orders of the priesthood and found

expression for his long-held religious leanings. From 1869 he returned regularly to Weimar,

where he had many pupils from around the world, and later accepted similar obligations in

Budapest, where he was regarded as a national hero. Liszt died in Bayreuth, Germany in 1886,

three years after the death of his son-in-law Richard Wagner. As a pianist Liszt had no equal,

and as a composer he indicated to the younger generations of musicians the new course that

music was to take.

Martin Krause (1853-1918)Student of Franz Liszt

Martin Krause was born in Lobstädt, Saxony, the youngest

son of the choirmaster and church schoolmaster Johann

Carl Friedrich Krause. He initially attended the teacher

training college in Borna, then he became a pupil of Franz

Liszt and later established himself as a piano teacher and

writer on music in Leipzig, where he founded the Franz

Liszt Association. From 1901 Krause worked as a professor

at the Royal Academy of Arts in Munich, and from at least

1896 to 1911 at the Stern Conservatory in Berlin. When

10-year-old Claudio Arrau began studying with him in 1913,

he reputedly stated, “he will become my masterpiece!” Krause was a stern taskmaster, but he

was also devoted to his young charge, and arranged for him to practice in his own house every

day for several hours. This enabled Krause to supervise the boy’s work, effectively giving him

a lesson every day. A victim of the flu epidemic, Krause died on August 2, 1918.

Program Notes

Transcendental Etudes

♫ Transcendental Etude No.1 in C Major – “Preludio”

Conceived first as a set of 48 Etudes in all major and minor keys when Liszt was 16, he

ultimately published 12 studies that announced his claims as the most formidable pianist of

his generation. “Liszt touched heights of virtuosity unknown before his time.” Both Berloioz

and Schumann ventured similar opinions, suggesting that only the composer would be able

to do them justice in performance. In the 20th

century, piano technique may have been

pushed a little further around the edges by composers like Leopold Godowsky, but by and

large, Liszt’s compositions seem to have set the standard for technical difficulty. This brief

opening Etude in C major is clearly an introduction or prologue, or as some commentators

have said, a warm up to what follows.

♫ Transcendental Etude No.2 in A Minor – “Fusées”

The title Fusées is not Liszt's own, but was added by Feruccio Busoni in his edition of the

Etudes, referring to the right hand figures that leap off the keyboard, giving impressions of

rockets going off. It is a study in alternating hands, hands overlapping, both hands playing the

same note alternatingly, and steep right hand leaps. It presents a severe accuracy challenge,

and is one of the harder etudes.

♫ Transcendental Etude No.3 in F Major – “Paysage” (Scenery)

This beautiful piece suggests a peaceful country scene. It is said that Liszt got the

idea of writing this etude while watching the scenery change during a train ride. The

gradually building intensity of the music suggests that the effect on the observer is that

of heightening inspiration, especially when the music modulates beautifully through several

keys in succession. Soon the music settles down and drifts downward, finally ending near

the bottom of the keyboard – perhaps suggesting that the observer has fallen asleep!

♫ Transcendental Etude No.4 in D Minor – “Mazeppa”

This etude was inspired by Victor Hugo’s dramatically morbid poem “Mazeppa,” in

which a Ukrainian page named Mazeppa is strapped onto a horse and the horse is set

free to gallop, resulting in great danger to both the horse and Mazeppa. At the end,

Mazeppa is crowned king.

The short introduction is clearly designed to intimidate, with its fierce rolled chords followed

by a wild scale dashing from the bottom of the keyboard to the top, and back to the bottom.

The main theme, which simulates galloping, is presented several times, each time telescoped

slightly more to suggest the increasing speed and desperation of the horse. A slower middle

section suddenly interrupts the action. Here the D minor theme is transformed into a lyrical

song in B flat major, which offers a brief respite to the mounting tension. The relief is short

lived, and the intensity builds until it explodes into frantic double octaves – and the wild ride

continues, faster than ever. Suddenly, the rolled chords of the introduction intrude, and

everything stops. Mazeppa has fallen from the horse. The recitative-like phrases in single

notes suggest that he may be breathing his last. Suddenly the music erupts in a fanfare-like

finale, illustrating the phrase from Victor Hugo that Liszt attached to the bottom of the last

page: “He finally falls – and rises a king!”

The Paganini Influence

♫ Grand Paganini Etude No.2 - E-flat Major

Nicolo Paganini composed 24 Caprices for unaccompanied violin. At the time they were

published they defined the farthest boundary achievable in violin playing. Even today

they are the most challenging works by which a violinist can demonstrate mastery of the

instrument, although performances of them are now quite common. When Liszt adapted

several of them for his Paganini Etudes, his goal was to challenge aspiring pianists

(and himself) to the same degree.

Etude No.2, sometimes called the “Octave Etude,” demonstrates how Liszt had mastered

the principal of equivalency – that is, retaining all the original music while making the piano

arrangement just as difficult, but no more difficult, than the violin original. For example, the

octaves in the middle section, which give the Etude its nickname, are horrendously difficult at

a fast tempo on the violin all by themselves. However, on the piano octaves are easier to play.

So Liszt added some counterpoint and doubling to the piano version – just enough so that the

pianist is challenged to about the same degree as the violinist. Similarly, the sparkling scales

that embellish the first part and the reprise are not inherently difficult on the piano, so Liszt

found ways to doctor them up as well – ways that nobody had thought of before!

Musical Lineage Tree

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist.

A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and

Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the

most famous and influential of all composers.

His best known compositions include nine symphonies, five

concertos for piano, 32 piano sonatas, and 16 string quartets.

He also composed other chamber music, choral works (including the celebrated Missa

Solemnis), and songs. Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part

of the Holy Roman Empire, Beethoven displayed his musical talents at an early age and was

taught by his father, Johann van Beethoven, and Christian Gottlob Neefe. Beethoven’s goal

was to study with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, but the latter died just before he was free to

move to Vienna. So instead Beethoven took a few lesson with Haydn, quickly gaining a

reputation as a virtuoso pianist. He lived in Vienna until his death.

About 1800 his hearing began to deteriorate, and by the last decade of his life he was almost

totally deaf. He gave up conducting and performing in public but continued to compose; many

of his most admired works come from this later period.

Carl Czerny (1791-1857)Student of Ludwig van Beethoven

Carl Czerny was an Austrian pianist, composer and teacher.

His vast musical production (more than a thousand pieces

numbering up to Opus 861) is undergoing a process of

rediscovery. Czerny´s books of études for the piano are still

widely used in pianistic pedagogy. Czerny was born in Vienna

to a musical family of Czech origin, although his name is

spelled using Polish orthography. His grandfather was a

violinist and his father was an oboist, organist and pianist.

His family came to Vienna from Nymburk, Bohemia and Carl himself did not speak German

until the age of ten. A child prodigy, Czerny began playing piano at age three and composing at

age seven. His first piano teacher was his father, Wenzel Czerny, who taught him mainly Bach

and Mozart. Among his important teachers were Beethoven, Clementi, Hummel, and Salieri.

Czerny played his first public performance in 1800 playing Mozart's Piano Concerto No.24

in C minor. However, he was never confident in his abilities as a "showman" piano performer

(as required at that time) and resolved to withdraw permanently from the stage, devoting

himself only to private recitals and piano teaching.

♫ Grand Paganini Etude No.3 in G Sharp Minor, “La Campanella”

This is the only one of the six Paganini Etudes

that is not a transcription of one of the Caprices.

Its melody comes from the final movement of

Paganini’s Violin Concerto No.2 in B Minor.

This tune is reinforced in the orchestra by a

Little handbell, hence the nickname given to it

by Pagnini himself.

La Campanella has, over the years, often been

utilized by unthinking players as some gigantic

warhorse, whereas it is clearly a study in quiet

playing with a mystical quality to it. It is marked

Allegretto until the last pages and only grows in

volume towards the end. Forte never occurs,

but fortissimo is indicated once—just for the

last eleven bars.

The étude is played at a brisk pace and studies

right hand jumping between intervals larger than

one octave, sometimes even stretching for two

whole octaves within the time of a sixteenth

note, at allegretto tempo.

As a whole, the étude can be practiced to increase dexterity

and accuracy at large jumps on the piano, along with agility

of the weaker fingers of the hand.

The largest intervals reached by the right hand are fifteenths

(two octaves) and sixteenths (two octaves and a second).

Sixteenth notes are played between the two notes, and the

same note is played two octaves or two octaves and a second

higher with no rest. No time is provided for the pianist to

move the hand, thus forcing the pianist to avoid tension

within the muscles. Fifteenth intervals are quite common

in the beginning of the étude, while the sixteenth intervals

appear twice, at the thirtieth and thirty-second measures.

The two (red/shaded) notes are 35 half-steps apart, which is about 46cm (18in) apart on a

piano. However, the left hand deals with four extremely large intervals, larger than those in

the right hand. For example, after the Più mosso, at the seventh measure, the left hand makes

a sixteenth-note jump of just a half-step below three octaves (see example above). The étude

also involves other technical difficulties, for example trills with the fourth and fifth fingers.

Niccolo Paganini, Franz Liszt & Robert Schumann

Niccolo Paganini Franz Liszt Robert Schumann

Liszt first heard Paganini in April 1831 and was so entranced by the unfettered expressiveness

of his playing, and Paganini’s ability to use his legendary technical ability for purely musical

ends, that the young Liszt immediately declared his intention of achieving upon the piano an

equivalent new technical mastery in order to unleash musical thoughts which had remained

hitherto inexpressible.

Liszt and Schumann, both of whom rated Paganini highly as a composer, began the trend

of writing pieces on Paganini’s themes in 1831/32 – Schumann first with a sketched work

for piano and orchestra, and then his first set of Six Studies (Opus 3) on Paganini’s Caprices.

Liszt followed with his Grande fantaisie de bravoure sur “La clochette,” based upon the third

movement of Paganini’s Second Violin Concerto. Schumann later wrote a second set of six

piano studies (Opus 10), and at the end of his creative life produced piano accompaniments

to Paganini's Caprices (an accomplishment later echoed by Karol Szymanovsky). Liszt wrote

a set of six studies in 1838 (S.140), sketched a further fantasy (combining the ‘Clochette’

theme with the Carnaval de Venise) in 1845 (S.700), and rewrote the six studies into their

commonly known final version in 1851 (S.141).

Paganini’s 24 Caprices for Solo Violin, Opus 1, were composed during the early years of the

19th century, and were published in 1820. They pay homage to a like-named work by Pietro

Locatelli and were of incalculable influence upon whole generations of violinists, and —just as

importantly — composers. They form the basis for all but

one of Liszt’s Paganini Etudes and Liszt remains very faithful

to Paganini’s text. (It is interesting that, although these

works are really transcriptions, they are always catalogued

and published as original Liszt works. Certainly there is a

wealth of original thinking in what Liszt wrote, but the basic

material and structure remain Paganini’s). Liszt dedicated

the 1838 set of studies to Clara Schumann and — typical of

his generosity and magnanimity — went on happily to

dedicate the 1851 set to her as well, in spite of her

Clara Schumann carping ingratitude.

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Operatic Paraphrase♫ Reminiscences of Norma by Bellini for Two Pianos

The Norma Fantasy dramatizes Norma’s struggle in Bellini’s opera between her duties

as high priestess of the Druids and her thwarted passion for the Roman soldier Pollione.

The Fantasy begins with an introduction based on Norma’s entrance theme from Act I.

It is followed by a long section elaborating all of the themes from the opera’s opening

scene, wherein the assembled Druids seek aid from their gods in their struggles with the

Romans and call upon Norma for guidance.

Norma’s entrance theme interrupts, leading to an expressive recitative (Liszt’s own

inspiration), followed by an elaborate treatment of the climatic finale of the opera, wherein

Norma reveals her betrayal of her sacred vows and her love affair with Pollione. She offers

herself as a victim, instead of Pollione, to the Gauls. Although this section and the next, the

chorus incitement to war (Guerra, Guerra), reach an incredible emotional and technical fury,

they are dwarfed by the even greater climax in the final section, which combines themes

from the opening and closing of the opera.

This contrapuntal “tour de force” provides not only a colossal pianistic climax to the Fantasy,

but a psychological one as well, bringing together, as it does, themes relating to Norma as

high priestess and as rejected, but forgiving, lover.

♫ Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

Other great composers followed Liszt’s incredible technical mastery like Rachmaninoff’s in his

Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Sergei Rachmaninoff grew up in a musical family, middle-

class but under strained economic conditions. His gifts as a pianist were recognized early, but

he had always wanted to compose and considered himself a composer first, pianist second.

Already established as a performer, he gained instant fame as a composer at age 19 with his

Prelude in C Sharp Minor, a work that haunted him all his life because audiences always

expected – and demanded – it as an encore to his concerts. The premiere performance of

Rachmaninoff’s First Symphony took place in St. Petersburg in 1897. It was a dismal failure, in

large part due to the shoddy conducting of Alexander Glazunov, who was drunk.

The disappointment brought on a severe depression,

and for three years Rachmaninoff was unable to do any

significant composing. Finally in 1900 he went for therapy

and hypnosis to Dr. Nikolai Dahl. The result was one of

the first well-known successes of modern psychotherapy.

Rachmaninoff was consequently able to return to creative

work on his Second Piano Concerto, dedicated to Dahl.

Relapses into depression dogged Rachmaninoff, however,

for the rest of his life. And significantly, all his large

instrumental compositions, as well as most of the rest

of his works, are in minor keys.

For 25 years Rachmaninoff managed to divide his time comfortably among composing,

conducting and performing, with composing having priority. But this idyllic life was changed

drastically in 1917 by the Russian Revolution, which, as a conservative and traditionalist, he

viewed with horror. That year, Rachmaninoff left the country with his family never to return,

eventually settling in the United States. His sources of income having dried up, he became a

full-time concert pianist for the rest of his life, leaving him little time to compose.

One of Rachmaninoff’s late works was the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, composed in

1934, a set of variations based on the 24th Caprice from Niccoló Paganini’s Caprices for Violin

Solo, Opus 1. This Caprice – itself a set of bravura variations – has also served such diverse

composers as Chopin, Liszt, Schumann, Brahms, Schnittke and Lutoslawski.

Rachmaninoff played the premiere with the Philadelphia Orchestra in Baltimore under the

baton of Leopold Stokowski. The piece opens with an introduction that hints at the theme to

come, followed by the first variation (which he labeled “precedente”), a skeletal version of the

theme itself, using only the first note of each of Paganini’s measures – Beethoven had used a

similar device to open the set of variation in the Finale of the Symphony No.3 (Eroica),

a stunningly novel approach for the time. (Continued Next Page)

Only afterwards does Rachmaninoff present the theme in full, following it with 23 more

variations and a mischievous two-measure coda. The variations give the pianist the same

kind of virtuosic workout as its model did for showman Paganini.

In the Rhapsody, Rachmaninoff reveals an inventiveness – and even an uncharacteristic

sense of humor – that rendered it an instant success with audiences and pianists alike.

While the Paganini Variations concentrate on virtuosic pyrotechnics, Rachmaninoff imbues

the little tune with a wide array of eccentric rhythms (Var. 2), clever harmonization’s (Var. 15)

and changing moods (Var. 8). Yet however much a variation appears to stray from the theme,

the underlying harmonic structure remains constant.

Rachmaninoff provides two surprises that save the work from unrelenting repetitiveness so

common with long sets of variations. One is in Variation 7 with the appearance of a second

theme, the Dies irae chant from the Catholic Mass for the Dead that reminds mourners of the

terrors of the Day of Judgment. It is a theme that recurs frequently in Rachmaninoff’s music,

usually in the most somber contexts, but here it has a decidedly tongue-in-cheek flavor: while

the piano plays the Dies irae, the orchestra continues to play the Paganini theme, with which it

conveniently harmonizes perfectly. The Dies irae recurs in later variations, but always balanced

by the main theme and never imposing its lugubrious atmosphere on the composition.

The second highlight occurs in Variation 18. Nearly all of Rachmaninoff’s music is in minor

keys. Yet, “compelled” by tradition to compose at least one variation in the opposite mode,

he accentuated the contrast by not only composing Variation 18 in the major mode, but

inverting the theme as well. Listeners often think of this variation as a totally new theme.

And indeed, it bears a striking similarity to the composer's romantic second themes in his

symphonies and piano concerti.

The Symphonic Poem

♫ St. Francis of Assisi Preaching to the Birds (Legend No.1)

♫ St. Francis of Paola Walking on the Waves (Legend No.2)

♫ Five Hungarian Folksongs

Much criticism was raised against Liszt because, in many of his earlier works of an overtly

Hungarian nature, he had not differentiated between gypsy café music or professionally

composed music, and Hungarian Folksongs.

Almost as a conscious act of atonement, it seems, Liszt arranged five “Authentic Hungarian

Folksongs,” even indicating repeats to correspond with the number of verses in the original

poem, just as he did in his chorale arrangements, and, as there, these repeats are not germane

to the musical structure and are not generally performed. He even included the texts, in the

Hungarian that he could not himself read with any fluency, at the head of four of these

charming miniatures.

#1. Lassan (Lento) – No Poem

#2. Meresekelv (Allegretto)

If I had all the treasures of the ocean,

I would give them, If I could call you my wife.

#3. Lassan (Andante)

Oh, how sad is my life since you left me,

You were the star of my happiness.

The night is so dark without stars.

#4. Kisse elenken (Vivace)

I looked everywhere but

I could not find a suitable horse.

So I stole the commissary’s horse.

“I beg you, commissary, don’t shoot my horse.”

“You are so stupid that

“You care more for your horse than for your life!”

#5. Busongva (Lento)

In the deep forest a turtledove cries for his mate.

I am crying for my love.

Special Solo Works

♫ Consolation No.3 in D Flat Major

The six Consolations are primarily lyrical piano works that – rare for Liszt – are relatively

uncomplicated. Each is a flower of unique beauty, but none is quite as incomparable as

No.3. It has a beautiful melody and a lovely, placid atmosphere. It has been suggested

that this piece is a tribute to Chopin’s Nocturne, Opus 27 No.2 in the same key, which

this Consolation closely resembles.

Liszt’s solo works are cast in a huge variety of forms, some familiar from Chopin’s works, such

as waltzes, polonaises, ballades and nocturnes (notturni). There are nationalistic works almost

without number, many of them rhapsodies – about three Spanish rhapsodies and several

dozen Hungarian rhapsodies, if you include revisions. Among his most interesting and unusual

works of this type are the Five Hungarian Folk Songs, which are as authentic in presentation

as any 19th

century composer could possibly achieve. There are many character pieces with

fanciful names, such as “Sleepless! Question and Answer” and “Unstern! – Sinistre – Disastro.”

A major part of Liszt’s output is religious in theme, and the form and content are as varied as

the titles. For example, one of his masterpieces is a 15-minute work entitled “Benediction of

God in Solitude.” It is part of a collection of pieces called “Poetic and Religious Harmonies,” in

which one of the pieces is simply titled “The Dead”. Finally, there are Liszt’s works in traditional

forms handed down from previous generations – fantasy and fugue, toccata, and the great

Sonata in B Minor, which is the most monumental and influential sonata after Beethoven.

Two Legends by Franz Liszt

Among the most interesting works by Franz Liszt are his Two Legends. In order to

understand them better, it helps to know some biographical facts about this most fascinating

of composers. At around the age of 50, Liszt suffered a personal tragedy. Two of his three

children died suddenly – Daniel, who was 20, and Blandine, aged 27. He resigned his music

director post at Weimar and found consolation in a deepening relationship with the Catholic

Church. In 1861 he moved to Rome and in 1863 entered the Oratory of the Madonna del

Rosario at Monte Mario. He took minor orders in the Catholic Church, and became known

as Abbé Liszt.

Much of his music from this time onwards was based on religious themes. Not so well known

these days, these works include oratorios and settings of the mass, psalms, and many short

choral pieces based on religious texts. Liszt composed the two Legends – “Saint Francis of

Assisi Preaching to the Birds” and “Saint Francis of Paola Walking on the Waves” – in the year

he entered the Oratory. The music was published in two versions – one for piano and the

other for orchestra. It is not certain which came first.

♫ Legend No.1: St. Francis of Assisi Preaching to the Birds

This piece was inspired by a passage from the Little Flowers of Saint Francis: “He lifted up his

eyes and saw the trees which stood by the wayside filled with a countless multitude of birds;

at which he marveled, and said to his companions: ‘Wait a little for me in the road, and I will

go and preach to my little brothers the birds.’ And he went into the field, and began to preach

to the birds that were on the ground; and forthwith those which were in the trees came

around him, and not one moved during the whole sermon; nor would they fly away until

the Saint had given them his blessing”.

Liszt gives the high register of the piano many passages of trills, runs and grace notes,

suggesting the trilling and fluttering of the little birds. Conversely the “sermon” episodes use

a deeper register and declamatory textures to indicate the solemnity of St. Francis message.

The climax suggests both passion and piety.

♫ Legend No.2: St. Francis of Paola Walking on the Waves

Saint Francis of Paola was born in Calabria in 1416. He founded his own order and was with

Louis XI at the time of his death in 1482. According to a famous story, in the year 1464

Saint Francis of Paola was refused passage by a boatman while trying to cross the Strait of

Messina to Sicily. The companions accompanying him had found room in the boat, but the

ferryman blocked his way for fear of overcrowding the boat.

Saint Francis gave the ferryman a little talking to about being a good Christian. The ferryman

rebuffed him by saying, “If he is a Saint, let him walk on the water.” Spreading his cloak on the

seas, Saint Francis tied one end to his staff as a sail and launched himself onto the waves.

Though buffeted by thunderous waves and flashing lighting, by his faith Saint Francis was

brought safely, with his companions following in the boat, all the way to Sicily. (Continued Next Page)

The introduction to this piece, which is basically an extended chorale, begins in a hesitating

way, as if Saint Francis is “finding his feet” on the water before growing gradually more

confident and sure. The main chorale melody has a “walking” character, and the left hand

accompaniment an oceanic, rumbling quality, suggesting that there might be rough sailing

ahead. Waves ripple, then swell and swirl, roll and boil, but the hymn-like theme is never fully

submerged. The virtuosity is in the increasingly violent octaves and scales that suggest that the

tempest is threatening to overwhelm the Saint before he can finish his journey. At one point

the hands trade roles: the walking chorale theme is in the left hand and the right hand has

towering arpeggios; one can hear that the waves are now over the Saint’s head. The walking

chorale theme disappears entirely and Saint Francis seems completely submerged. Suddenly,

with an enormous burst of octaves, Saint Francis emerges from the wall of water.

Then follows the glorious return of the chorale theme, which forms the climax of the work,

illustrating the triumph of faith over adversity. The ending of this piece is prayer-like, yet

bathed in glory, with not the slightest hint of grandiloquence. One can virtually see

St. Francis kneeling gratefully on terra firma, uttering a prayer of thanks.

Song Transcriptions

♫ Liebesträume No.3 (Dreams of Love)

Liebesträume (German for Dreams of Love) is a set of three solo piano works published in

1850. Liszt called each of the three pieces Liebesträume (plural); but, often they are referred

to incorrectly in the singular as Liebestraum (especially No.3, the most famous of the three).

Originally the three Liebesträume (also called Notturni or Nocturnes) were conceived as songs

after poems by Ludwig Uhland and Ferdinand Freilingrath. In 1850, two versions appeared

simultaneously as a set of songs for high voice and piano, and as transcriptions for piano solo.

The two poems by Uhland and the one by Freiligrath depict three different forms of love.

Uhland's Hohe Liebe (Exalted Love) is saintly, or religious, love: the "martyr" renounces worldly

love and "heaven has opened its gates". The second song Seliger Tod (Holy Death) is often

known by its first line (“Gestorben war ich”) (“I was dead”), and evokes erotic love; “dead”

could be a metaphor here referring to what is known as “le petit mort” in French (“I was dead

from love’s bliss; I lay buried in her arms; I was wakened by her kisses; I saw heaven in her

eyes”). Freiligrath's poem for the famous third Notturno is about unconditional mature love,

and warns that love lost is miserable: “Love as long as you can! The hour will come when you

will stand at the grave and mourn”.

♫ Schumann Song Transcription – Widmung (Dedication)

In the years 1832-1839, Robert Schumann wrote almost exclusively for the piano, but in

1840 alone he wrote 168 songs. Indeed 1840 (referred to as "the year of song") is highly

significant in Schumann's musical legacy despite his earlier deriding of works for piano

and voice as inferior.

Prior to his marriage to the pianist Clara Wieck, the lovers Robert and Clara exchanged love

letters and rendezvoused in secret. Robert would often wait in a cafe for hours in a nearby city

just to see Clara for a few minutes after one of her concerts. The strain of this long courtship,

(they finally married in 1840) and its consummation led to this great outpouring of vocal songs

with piano accompaniment. This is evident in “Widmung,” for example, where he uses the

melody from Schubert’s “Ave Maria” in the postlude in homage to Clara. Schumann's

biographers have attributed the sweetness, the doubt and the despair of these songs to the

varying emotions aroused by his love for Clara and the uncertainties of their future together.

Widmung (Dedication)A poem by Friedrich Rückert, No. 1 of "Myrthen", Opus 25

You my soul, you my heart, you my bliss, O you my pain,

you my world in which I live, my heaven you, wherein I float,

O you my grave, into which I ever lowered all my cares.

You are my rest, you are my peace, you are bestowed on me by heaven.

That you love me makes me worthy of myself, your gaze has transfigured me in my own sight,

you lift me above myself in love,

my good genius, my better self!

You my soul, you my heart, you my bliss, O you my pain,

you my world in which I live, my heaven you in which I float,

my good genius, my better self!

The introduction to this piece, which is basically an extended chorale, begins in a hesitating

way, as if Saint Francis is “finding his feet” on the water before growing gradually more

confident and sure. The main chorale melody has a “walking” character, and the left hand

accompaniment an oceanic, rumbling quality, suggesting that there might be rough sailing

ahead. Waves ripple, then swell and swirl, roll and boil, but the hymn-like theme is never fully

submerged. The virtuosity is in the increasingly violent octaves and scales that suggest that the

tempest is threatening to overwhelm the Saint before he can finish his journey. At one point

the hands trade roles: the walking chorale theme is in the left hand and the right hand has

towering arpeggios; one can hear that the waves are now over the Saint’s head. The walking

chorale theme disappears entirely and Saint Francis seems completely submerged. Suddenly,

with an enormous burst of octaves, Saint Francis emerges from the wall of water.

Then follows the glorious return of the chorale theme, which forms the climax of the work,

illustrating the triumph of faith over adversity. The ending of this piece is prayer-like, yet

bathed in glory, with not the slightest hint of grandiloquence. One can virtually see

St. Francis kneeling gratefully on terra firma, uttering a prayer of thanks.

Song Transcriptions

♫ Liebesträume No.3 (Dreams of Love)

Liebesträume (German for Dreams of Love) is a set of three solo piano works published in

1850. Liszt called each of the three pieces Liebesträume (plural); but, often they are referred

to incorrectly in the singular as Liebestraum (especially No.3, the most famous of the three).

Originally the three Liebesträume (also called Notturni or Nocturnes) were conceived as songs

after poems by Ludwig Uhland and Ferdinand Freilingrath. In 1850, two versions appeared

simultaneously as a set of songs for high voice and piano, and as transcriptions for piano solo.

The two poems by Uhland and the one by Freiligrath depict three different forms of love.

Uhland's Hohe Liebe (Exalted Love) is saintly, or religious, love: the "martyr" renounces worldly

love and "heaven has opened its gates". The second song Seliger Tod (Holy Death) is often

known by its first line (“Gestorben war ich”) (“I was dead”), and evokes erotic love; “dead”

could be a metaphor here referring to what is known as “le petit mort” in French (“I was dead

from love’s bliss; I lay buried in her arms; I was wakened by her kisses; I saw heaven in her

eyes”). Freiligrath's poem for the famous third Notturno is about unconditional mature love,

and warns that love lost is miserable: “Love as long as you can! The hour will come when you

will stand at the grave and mourn”.

♫ Schumann Song Transcription – Widmung (Dedication)

In the years 1832-1839, Robert Schumann wrote almost exclusively for the piano, but in

1840 alone he wrote 168 songs. Indeed 1840 (referred to as "the year of song") is highly

significant in Schumann's musical legacy despite his earlier deriding of works for piano

and voice as inferior.

Prior to his marriage to the pianist Clara Wieck, the lovers Robert and Clara exchanged love

letters and rendezvoused in secret. Robert would often wait in a cafe for hours in a nearby city

just to see Clara for a few minutes after one of her concerts. The strain of this long courtship,

(they finally married in 1840) and its consummation led to this great outpouring of vocal songs

with piano accompaniment. This is evident in “Widmung,” for example, where he uses the

melody from Schubert’s “Ave Maria” in the postlude in homage to Clara. Schumann's

biographers have attributed the sweetness, the doubt and the despair of these songs to the

varying emotions aroused by his love for Clara and the uncertainties of their future together.

Widmung (Dedication)A poem by Friedrich Rückert, No. 1 of "Myrthen", Opus 25

You my soul, you my heart, you my bliss, O you my pain,

you my world in which I live, my heaven you, wherein I float,

O you my grave, into which I ever lowered all my cares.

You are my rest, you are my peace, you are bestowed on me by heaven.

That you love me makes me worthy of myself, your gaze has transfigured me in my own sight,

you lift me above myself in love,

my good genius, my better self!

You my soul, you my heart, you my bliss, O you my pain,

you my world in which I live, my heaven you in which I float,

my good genius, my better self!

Special Solo Works

♫ Consolation No.3 in D Flat Major

The six Consolations are primarily lyrical piano works that – rare for Liszt – are relatively

uncomplicated. Each is a flower of unique beauty, but none is quite as incomparable as

No.3. It has a beautiful melody and a lovely, placid atmosphere. It has been suggested

that this piece is a tribute to Chopin’s Nocturne, Opus 27 No.2 in the same key, which

this Consolation closely resembles.

Liszt’s solo works are cast in a huge variety of forms, some familiar from Chopin’s works, such

as waltzes, polonaises, ballades and nocturnes (notturni). There are nationalistic works almost

without number, many of them rhapsodies – about three Spanish rhapsodies and several

dozen Hungarian rhapsodies, if you include revisions. Among his most interesting and unusual

works of this type are the Five Hungarian Folk Songs, which are as authentic in presentation

as any 19th

century composer could possibly achieve. There are many character pieces with

fanciful names, such as “Sleepless! Question and Answer” and “Unstern! – Sinistre – Disastro.”

A major part of Liszt’s output is religious in theme, and the form and content are as varied as

the titles. For example, one of his masterpieces is a 15-minute work entitled “Benediction of

God in Solitude.” It is part of a collection of pieces called “Poetic and Religious Harmonies,” in

which one of the pieces is simply titled “The Dead”. Finally, there are Liszt’s works in traditional

forms handed down from previous generations – fantasy and fugue, toccata, and the great

Sonata in B Minor, which is the most monumental and influential sonata after Beethoven.

Two Legends by Franz Liszt

Among the most interesting works by Franz Liszt are his Two Legends. In order to

understand them better, it helps to know some biographical facts about this most fascinating

of composers. At around the age of 50, Liszt suffered a personal tragedy. Two of his three

children died suddenly – Daniel, who was 20, and Blandine, aged 27. He resigned his music

director post at Weimar and found consolation in a deepening relationship with the Catholic

Church. In 1861 he moved to Rome and in 1863 entered the Oratory of the Madonna del

Rosario at Monte Mario. He took minor orders in the Catholic Church, and became known

as Abbé Liszt.

Much of his music from this time onwards was based on religious themes. Not so well known

these days, these works include oratorios and settings of the mass, psalms, and many short

choral pieces based on religious texts. Liszt composed the two Legends – “Saint Francis of

Assisi Preaching to the Birds” and “Saint Francis of Paola Walking on the Waves” – in the year

he entered the Oratory. The music was published in two versions – one for piano and the

other for orchestra. It is not certain which came first.

♫ Legend No.1: St. Francis of Assisi Preaching to the Birds

This piece was inspired by a passage from the Little Flowers of Saint Francis: “He lifted up his

eyes and saw the trees which stood by the wayside filled with a countless multitude of birds;

at which he marveled, and said to his companions: ‘Wait a little for me in the road, and I will

go and preach to my little brothers the birds.’ And he went into the field, and began to preach

to the birds that were on the ground; and forthwith those which were in the trees came

around him, and not one moved during the whole sermon; nor would they fly away until

the Saint had given them his blessing”.

Liszt gives the high register of the piano many passages of trills, runs and grace notes,

suggesting the trilling and fluttering of the little birds. Conversely the “sermon” episodes use

a deeper register and declamatory textures to indicate the solemnity of St. Francis message.

The climax suggests both passion and piety.

♫ Legend No.2: St. Francis of Paola Walking on the Waves

Saint Francis of Paola was born in Calabria in 1416. He founded his own order and was with

Louis XI at the time of his death in 1482. According to a famous story, in the year 1464

Saint Francis of Paola was refused passage by a boatman while trying to cross the Strait of

Messina to Sicily. The companions accompanying him had found room in the boat, but the

ferryman blocked his way for fear of overcrowding the boat.

Saint Francis gave the ferryman a little talking to about being a good Christian. The ferryman

rebuffed him by saying, “If he is a Saint, let him walk on the water.” Spreading his cloak on the

seas, Saint Francis tied one end to his staff as a sail and launched himself onto the waves.

Though buffeted by thunderous waves and flashing lighting, by his faith Saint Francis was

brought safely, with his companions following in the boat, all the way to Sicily. (Continued Next Page)

Only afterwards does Rachmaninoff present the theme in full, following it with 23 more

variations and a mischievous two-measure coda. The variations give the pianist the same

kind of virtuosic workout as its model did for showman Paganini.

In the Rhapsody, Rachmaninoff reveals an inventiveness – and even an uncharacteristic

sense of humor – that rendered it an instant success with audiences and pianists alike.

While the Paganini Variations concentrate on virtuosic pyrotechnics, Rachmaninoff imbues

the little tune with a wide array of eccentric rhythms (Var. 2), clever harmonization’s (Var. 15)

and changing moods (Var. 8). Yet however much a variation appears to stray from the theme,

the underlying harmonic structure remains constant.

Rachmaninoff provides two surprises that save the work from unrelenting repetitiveness so

common with long sets of variations. One is in Variation 7 with the appearance of a second

theme, the Dies irae chant from the Catholic Mass for the Dead that reminds mourners of the

terrors of the Day of Judgment. It is a theme that recurs frequently in Rachmaninoff’s music,

usually in the most somber contexts, but here it has a decidedly tongue-in-cheek flavor: while

the piano plays the Dies irae, the orchestra continues to play the Paganini theme, with which it

conveniently harmonizes perfectly. The Dies irae recurs in later variations, but always balanced

by the main theme and never imposing its lugubrious atmosphere on the composition.

The second highlight occurs in Variation 18. Nearly all of Rachmaninoff’s music is in minor

keys. Yet, “compelled” by tradition to compose at least one variation in the opposite mode,

he accentuated the contrast by not only composing Variation 18 in the major mode, but

inverting the theme as well. Listeners often think of this variation as a totally new theme.

And indeed, it bears a striking similarity to the composer's romantic second themes in his

symphonies and piano concerti.

The Symphonic Poem

♫ St. Francis of Assisi Preaching to the Birds (Legend No.1)

♫ St. Francis of Paola Walking on the Waves (Legend No.2)

♫ Five Hungarian Folksongs

Much criticism was raised against Liszt because, in many of his earlier works of an overtly

Hungarian nature, he had not differentiated between gypsy café music or professionally

composed music, and Hungarian Folksongs.

Almost as a conscious act of atonement, it seems, Liszt arranged five “Authentic Hungarian

Folksongs,” even indicating repeats to correspond with the number of verses in the original

poem, just as he did in his chorale arrangements, and, as there, these repeats are not germane

to the musical structure and are not generally performed. He even included the texts, in the

Hungarian that he could not himself read with any fluency, at the head of four of these

charming miniatures.

#1. Lassan (Lento) – No Poem

#2. Meresekelv (Allegretto)

If I had all the treasures of the ocean,

I would give them, If I could call you my wife.

#3. Lassan (Andante)

Oh, how sad is my life since you left me,

You were the star of my happiness.

The night is so dark without stars.

#4. Kisse elenken (Vivace)

I looked everywhere but

I could not find a suitable horse.

So I stole the commissary’s horse.

“I beg you, commissary, don’t shoot my horse.”

“You are so stupid that

“You care more for your horse than for your life!”

#5. Busongva (Lento)

In the deep forest a turtledove cries for his mate.

I am crying for my love.

Operatic Paraphrase♫ Reminiscences of Norma by Bellini for Two Pianos

The Norma Fantasy dramatizes Norma’s struggle in Bellini’s opera between her duties

as high priestess of the Druids and her thwarted passion for the Roman soldier Pollione.

The Fantasy begins with an introduction based on Norma’s entrance theme from Act I.

It is followed by a long section elaborating all of the themes from the opera’s opening

scene, wherein the assembled Druids seek aid from their gods in their struggles with the

Romans and call upon Norma for guidance.

Norma’s entrance theme interrupts, leading to an expressive recitative (Liszt’s own

inspiration), followed by an elaborate treatment of the climatic finale of the opera, wherein

Norma reveals her betrayal of her sacred vows and her love affair with Pollione. She offers

herself as a victim, instead of Pollione, to the Gauls. Although this section and the next, the

chorus incitement to war (Guerra, Guerra), reach an incredible emotional and technical fury,

they are dwarfed by the even greater climax in the final section, which combines themes

from the opening and closing of the opera.

This contrapuntal “tour de force” provides not only a colossal pianistic climax to the Fantasy,

but a psychological one as well, bringing together, as it does, themes relating to Norma as

high priestess and as rejected, but forgiving, lover.

♫ Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

Other great composers followed Liszt’s incredible technical mastery like Rachmaninoff’s in his

Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Sergei Rachmaninoff grew up in a musical family, middle-

class but under strained economic conditions. His gifts as a pianist were recognized early, but

he had always wanted to compose and considered himself a composer first, pianist second.

Already established as a performer, he gained instant fame as a composer at age 19 with his

Prelude in C Sharp Minor, a work that haunted him all his life because audiences always

expected – and demanded – it as an encore to his concerts. The premiere performance of

Rachmaninoff’s First Symphony took place in St. Petersburg in 1897. It was a dismal failure, in

large part due to the shoddy conducting of Alexander Glazunov, who was drunk.

The disappointment brought on a severe depression,

and for three years Rachmaninoff was unable to do any

significant composing. Finally in 1900 he went for therapy

and hypnosis to Dr. Nikolai Dahl. The result was one of

the first well-known successes of modern psychotherapy.

Rachmaninoff was consequently able to return to creative

work on his Second Piano Concerto, dedicated to Dahl.

Relapses into depression dogged Rachmaninoff, however,

for the rest of his life. And significantly, all his large

instrumental compositions, as well as most of the rest

of his works, are in minor keys.

For 25 years Rachmaninoff managed to divide his time comfortably among composing,

conducting and performing, with composing having priority. But this idyllic life was changed

drastically in 1917 by the Russian Revolution, which, as a conservative and traditionalist, he

viewed with horror. That year, Rachmaninoff left the country with his family never to return,

eventually settling in the United States. His sources of income having dried up, he became a

full-time concert pianist for the rest of his life, leaving him little time to compose.

One of Rachmaninoff’s late works was the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, composed in

1934, a set of variations based on the 24th Caprice from Niccoló Paganini’s Caprices for Violin

Solo, Opus 1. This Caprice – itself a set of bravura variations – has also served such diverse

composers as Chopin, Liszt, Schumann, Brahms, Schnittke and Lutoslawski.

Rachmaninoff played the premiere with the Philadelphia Orchestra in Baltimore under the

baton of Leopold Stokowski. The piece opens with an introduction that hints at the theme to

come, followed by the first variation (which he labeled “precedente”), a skeletal version of the

theme itself, using only the first note of each of Paganini’s measures – Beethoven had used a

similar device to open the set of variation in the Finale of the Symphony No.3 (Eroica),

a stunningly novel approach for the time. (Continued Next Page)

Niccolo Paganini, Franz Liszt & Robert Schumann

Niccolo Paganini Franz Liszt Robert Schumann

Liszt first heard Paganini in April 1831 and was so entranced by the unfettered expressiveness

of his playing, and Paganini’s ability to use his legendary technical ability for purely musical

ends, that the young Liszt immediately declared his intention of achieving upon the piano an

equivalent new technical mastery in order to unleash musical thoughts which had remained

hitherto inexpressible.

Liszt and Schumann, both of whom rated Paganini highly as a composer, began the trend

of writing pieces on Paganini’s themes in 1831/32 – Schumann first with a sketched work

for piano and orchestra, and then his first set of Six Studies (Opus 3) on Paganini’s Caprices.

Liszt followed with his Grande fantaisie de bravoure sur “La clochette,” based upon the third

movement of Paganini’s Second Violin Concerto. Schumann later wrote a second set of six

piano studies (Opus 10), and at the end of his creative life produced piano accompaniments

to Paganini's Caprices (an accomplishment later echoed by Karol Szymanovsky). Liszt wrote

a set of six studies in 1838 (S.140), sketched a further fantasy (combining the ‘Clochette’

theme with the Carnaval de Venise) in 1845 (S.700), and rewrote the six studies into their

commonly known final version in 1851 (S.141).

Paganini’s 24 Caprices for Solo Violin, Opus 1, were composed during the early years of the

19th century, and were published in 1820. They pay homage to a like-named work by Pietro

Locatelli and were of incalculable influence upon whole generations of violinists, and —just as

importantly — composers. They form the basis for all but

one of Liszt’s Paganini Etudes and Liszt remains very faithful

to Paganini’s text. (It is interesting that, although these

works are really transcriptions, they are always catalogued

and published as original Liszt works. Certainly there is a

wealth of original thinking in what Liszt wrote, but the basic

material and structure remain Paganini’s). Liszt dedicated

the 1838 set of studies to Clara Schumann and — typical of

his generosity and magnanimity — went on happily to

dedicate the 1851 set to her as well, in spite of her

Clara Schumann carping ingratitude.

Thank Youto the

Mary Comerford Memorial FundFor Sponsoring this

Beautiful 4-Color Program Guide

The Mary Comerford Memorial Fund brings alive theWorld Masterwork Series

In living color for this

Magical Musical ExperiencePreserving the

Musical Lineage of Franz Liszt

Musical Lineage Tree

Ludwig van Beethoven (1771-1827) Carl Czerny (1791-1857)

Franz Liszt (1811-1886)

Martin Krause (1853-1918) Claudio Arrau (1903-1991) Dr. John Cobb (b. 1942)

Dr. John Cobb & Chirstopher Tavernier (2013) Christopher Tavernier (b. 2000)

♫ Transcendental Etude No.4 in D Minor – “Mazeppa”

This etude was inspired by Victor Hugo’s dramatically morbid poem “Mazeppa,” in

which a Ukrainian page named Mazeppa is strapped onto a horse and the horse is set

free to gallop, resulting in great danger to both the horse and Mazeppa. At the end,

Mazeppa is crowned king.

The short introduction is clearly designed to intimidate, with its fierce rolled chords followed

by a wild scale dashing from the bottom of the keyboard to the top, and back to the bottom.

The main theme, which simulates galloping, is presented several times, each time telescoped

slightly more to suggest the increasing speed and desperation of the horse. A slower middle

section suddenly interrupts the action. Here the D minor theme is transformed into a lyrical

song in B flat major, which offers a brief respite to the mounting tension. The relief is short

lived, and the intensity builds until it explodes into frantic double octaves – and the wild ride

continues, faster than ever. Suddenly, the rolled chords of the introduction intrude, and

everything stops. Mazeppa has fallen from the horse. The recitative-like phrases in single

notes suggest that he may be breathing his last. Suddenly the music erupts in a fanfare-like

finale, illustrating the phrase from Victor Hugo that Liszt attached to the bottom of the last

page: “He finally falls – and rises a king!”

The Paganini Influence

♫ Grand Paganini Etude No.2 - E-flat Major

Nicolo Paganini composed 24 Caprices for unaccompanied violin. At the time they were

published they defined the farthest boundary achievable in violin playing. Even today

they are the most challenging works by which a violinist can demonstrate mastery of the

instrument, although performances of them are now quite common. When Liszt adapted

several of them for his Paganini Etudes, his goal was to challenge aspiring pianists

(and himself) to the same degree.

Etude No.2, sometimes called the “Octave Etude,” demonstrates how Liszt had mastered

the principal of equivalency – that is, retaining all the original music while making the piano

arrangement just as difficult, but no more difficult, than the violin original. For example, the

octaves in the middle section, which give the Etude its nickname, are horrendously difficult at

a fast tempo on the violin all by themselves. However, on the piano octaves are easier to play.

So Liszt added some counterpoint and doubling to the piano version – just enough so that the

pianist is challenged to about the same degree as the violinist. Similarly, the sparkling scales

that embellish the first part and the reprise are not inherently difficult on the piano, so Liszt

found ways to doctor them up as well – ways that nobody had thought of before!

Musical Lineage Tree

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist.

A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and

Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the

most famous and influential of all composers.

His best known compositions include nine symphonies, five

concertos for piano, 32 piano sonatas, and 16 string quartets.

He also composed other chamber music, choral works (including the celebrated Missa

Solemnis), and songs. Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part

of the Holy Roman Empire, Beethoven displayed his musical talents at an early age and was

taught by his father, Johann van Beethoven, and Christian Gottlob Neefe. Beethoven’s goal

was to study with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, but the latter died just before he was free to

move to Vienna. So instead Beethoven took a few lesson with Haydn, quickly gaining a

reputation as a virtuoso pianist. He lived in Vienna until his death.

About 1800 his hearing began to deteriorate, and by the last decade of his life he was almost

totally deaf. He gave up conducting and performing in public but continued to compose; many

of his most admired works come from this later period.

Carl Czerny (1791-1857)Student of Ludwig van Beethoven

Carl Czerny was an Austrian pianist, composer and teacher.

His vast musical production (more than a thousand pieces

numbering up to Opus 861) is undergoing a process of

rediscovery. Czerny´s books of études for the piano are still

widely used in pianistic pedagogy. Czerny was born in Vienna

to a musical family of Czech origin, although his name is

spelled using Polish orthography. His grandfather was a

violinist and his father was an oboist, organist and pianist.

His family came to Vienna from Nymburk, Bohemia and Carl himself did not speak German

until the age of ten. A child prodigy, Czerny began playing piano at age three and composing at

age seven. His first piano teacher was his father, Wenzel Czerny, who taught him mainly Bach

and Mozart. Among his important teachers were Beethoven, Clementi, Hummel, and Salieri.

Czerny played his first public performance in 1800 playing Mozart's Piano Concerto No.24

in C minor. However, he was never confident in his abilities as a "showman" piano performer

(as required at that time) and resolved to withdraw permanently from the stage, devoting

himself only to private recitals and piano teaching.

Franz Liszt (1811-1886)Student of Carl Czerny

Franz Liszt was the son of a steward in the service of the

Esterhazy family, patrons of the great composer Franz

Joseph Haydn, who died just two years before Liszt was

born. He came into the world in 1811 at Raiding in

Hungary. Due to his startling musical gifts, at the age of

10 he moved with his family to Vienna, where he took

piano lessons from Czerny (Beethoven’s student and close

friend) and composition lessons from Salieri. Two years

later, in 1823, he moved with his family, now impoverished, to Paris, effectively ending his

formal music training. Still a child, he rapidly gained a reputation as the greatest pianist in

Europe, and at the same time pursued his serious compositional interests. At age 19, Liszt

became influenced by the phenomenal violinist Paganini, and he turned his attention to

developing a similarly transcendental technique that could be applied to the piano. When he

was 24 he left Paris with his mistress, the Countess d’Agoult, with whom he traveled widely for

the next few years, his reputation as a pianist of astonishing powers preceding him. Eventually

he separated from the Countess d’Agoult, who had become the mother of his three children,

and in 1848 he settled in Weimar as Director of Music. His companion at the time (and for the

next 20 years) was Princess Caroline Sayn-Wittgenstein, who also served as his muse. She

encouraged him to retire from his constant touring as a performer so that he could fully realize

his potential as a composer. In turning his attention to composition he began advancing the

language of music, and in the process invented a new form: the Symphonic Poem.

In 1861 Liszt moved to Rome, where he took several orders of the priesthood and found

expression for his long-held religious leanings. From 1869 he returned regularly to Weimar,

where he had many pupils from around the world, and later accepted similar obligations in

Budapest, where he was regarded as a national hero. Liszt died in Bayreuth, Germany in 1886,

three years after the death of his son-in-law Richard Wagner. As a pianist Liszt had no equal,

and as a composer he indicated to the younger generations of musicians the new course that

music was to take.

Martin Krause (1853-1918)Student of Franz Liszt

Martin Krause was born in Lobstädt, Saxony, the youngest

son of the choirmaster and church schoolmaster Johann

Carl Friedrich Krause. He initially attended the teacher

training college in Borna, then he became a pupil of Franz

Liszt and later established himself as a piano teacher and

writer on music in Leipzig, where he founded the Franz

Liszt Association. From 1901 Krause worked as a professor

at the Royal Academy of Arts in Munich, and from at least

1896 to 1911 at the Stern Conservatory in Berlin. When

10-year-old Claudio Arrau began studying with him in 1913,

he reputedly stated, “he will become my masterpiece!” Krause was a stern taskmaster, but he

was also devoted to his young charge, and arranged for him to practice in his own house every

day for several hours. This enabled Krause to supervise the boy’s work, effectively giving him

a lesson every day. A victim of the flu epidemic, Krause died on August 2, 1918.

Program Notes

Transcendental Etudes

♫ Transcendental Etude No.1 in C Major – “Preludio”

Conceived first as a set of 48 Etudes in all major and minor keys when Liszt was 16, he

ultimately published 12 studies that announced his claims as the most formidable pianist of

his generation. “Liszt touched heights of virtuosity unknown before his time.” Both Berloioz

and Schumann ventured similar opinions, suggesting that only the composer would be able

to do them justice in performance. In the 20th

century, piano technique may have been

pushed a little further around the edges by composers like Leopold Godowsky, but by and

large, Liszt’s compositions seem to have set the standard for technical difficulty. This brief

opening Etude in C major is clearly an introduction or prologue, or as some commentators

have said, a warm up to what follows.

♫ Transcendental Etude No.2 in A Minor – “Fusées”

The title Fusées is not Liszt's own, but was added by Feruccio Busoni in his edition of the

Etudes, referring to the right hand figures that leap off the keyboard, giving impressions of

rockets going off. It is a study in alternating hands, hands overlapping, both hands playing the

same note alternatingly, and steep right hand leaps. It presents a severe accuracy challenge,

and is one of the harder etudes.

♫ Transcendental Etude No.3 in F Major – “Paysage” (Scenery)

This beautiful piece suggests a peaceful country scene. It is said that Liszt got the

idea of writing this etude while watching the scenery change during a train ride. The

gradually building intensity of the music suggests that the effect on the observer is that

of heightening inspiration, especially when the music modulates beautifully through several

keys in succession. Soon the music settles down and drifts downward, finally ending near

the bottom of the keyboard – perhaps suggesting that the observer has fallen asleep!

ProgramThe Musical Heritage of Franz Liszt

Transcendental Etudes

John Cobb: Transcendental Etude No.1 (“Preludio”)

Christopher Tavernier: Transcendental Etude No.2 (“Molto Vivace”)

John Cobb: Transcendental Etude No.3 (“Paysage”)

Christopher Tavernier: Transcendental Etude No.4 (“Mazeppa”)

The Paganini Influence

John Cobb: Paganini Etude No.2 in E-flat Major

Christopher Tavernier: Paganini Etude No.3 in G# minor, (La Campanella)

Christopher Tavernier and John Cobb:

Rachmaninoff: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Opus 43, for piano and orchestra

Arrangement for two pianos

Brief Intermission

The Symphonic Poem

John Cobb: Legend No.1 (“Saint Francis of Assisi Preaching to the Birds”)

Christopher Tavernier: Legend No.2 (“Saint Francis of Paola Walking on the Waves”)

Song Transcriptions

John Cobb: Liebesträume No.3 – Song by Liszt

Christopher Tavernier: Widmung (Dedication) – Song by Robert Schumann

Special Solo Works

John Cobb: Consolation No.3 in D Flat

Christopher Tavernier: Five Hungarian Folk Songs (With readings)

Operatic Paraphrase

Christopher Tavernier and John Cobb:

Reminiscences of Norma by Bellini, for two pianos

Claudio Arrau (1903-1991)Student of Martin Krause

Arrau was born in Chillán, Chile, the son of Carlos Arrau,

an ophthalmologist who died when Claudio was only a year

old, and Lucrecia León Bravo de Villalba, a piano teacher.

He belonged to an old, prominent family of Southern Chile.

His ancestor Lorenzo de Arrau, a Spanish engineer, was

sent to Chile by King Carlos III of Spain. Through his great-

grandmother, María del Carmen Daroch del Solar, Arrau

was a descendant of the Campbells of Glenorchy, a Scottish

noble family. Arrau was a child prodigy, giving his first concert at age five. When he was 6 he

auditioned in front of several congressmen and President Pedro Montt, who became so

impressed as to start arrangements for his future education.

At age 8 he was sent on a 10-year long grant from the Chilean government to study in

Germany, travelling in the company of his mother and sister Lucrecia. He was admitted at the

Stern Conservatory of Berlin where he eventually became a pupil of Martin Krause, who had

studied under Franz Liszt.

At the age of 11 he could play Liszt's Transcendental Etudes, considered to be one of the most

difficult sets of works ever written for the piano, and also Brahms's Paganini Variations.

Arrau's first recordings were made on Aeolian Duo-Art player piano music rolls. Krause died

after five years of teaching Arrau, who at fifteen was devastated at the loss of his mentor.

In 1935, Arrau performed the complete keyboard works of Johann Sebastian Bach in 12

recitals. In 1936, he played all the Mozart keyboard works. He then played complete Schubert

and Weber cycles. In 1938, for the first time ever, Arrau performed the complete Beethoven

piano sonatas and concertos in Mexico City. He repeated this in New York and London and

became one of the leading authorities on Beethoven in the 20th century.

In 1937, Arrau married the mezzo-soprano Ruth Schneider, and they had three children:

Carmen (1938–2006), Mario (1940–1988) and Christopher (b. 1959). In 1941 the Arrau

family left Germany and migrated to the United States, where they spent their remaining

years. He settled in New York City and later adopted dual U.S. and Chilean citizenships.

Claudio Arrau died in 1991, at the age of 88, in Mürzzuschlag, Austria, while attending the

festivities for the opening of the Johannes Brahms museum there.

Many have claimed that Arrau’s rich, weighty tone lent his interpretations an authoritative,

distinctive voice. Arrau was an inquiring and a deeply reflective interpreter. He said that he

felt it his duty to reveal the Soul within each great musical composition.

Arrau's attitude toward music was very serious. He preached fidelity to the score. Although

he often played with slower and more deliberate tempi from his middle age, Arrau had a

reputation for being a fabulous virtuoso early in his career. According to Joseph Horowitz in his

book Conversations with Arrau (1982), many critics felt that his overall approach became less

spontaneous and more reserved and introspective after the death of his mother, to whom he

was extremely close. Arrau had isolated himself for two weeks after his mother's death,

refusing to perform or to receive comfort from friends.

Dr. John Cobb (b. 1942)Student of Claudio Arrau

Dr. John Cobb is an international performer and

recording artist known for his broad interpretive range

and technical command. The New York Times has

praised his “solid technique, bronze tone and flexibility

of interpretive style.” The Chicago Daily News

commented, “the vibrations that filled the hall were

less those of the piano than those of an exquisite

musical mind.” He has performed throughout the United States and Europe. In recent years

he has performed the piano works of the American master Samuel Barber, including his Piano

Concerto with the Asheville Symphony Orchestra. His solo repertoire also contains many of the

works of Franz Liszt, of whom he is a direct musical descendant through his teacher, pianist

Claudio Arrau, whose teacher was a pupil of Liszt.

Dr. Cobb continues to play a broad repertoire of chamber music and collaborates with artists

such as Joel Smirnoff, former first violinist with the Juilliard String Quartet and Jason Posnock,

Associate Music Director of the Brevard Institute and concertmaster of the

Asheville Symphony Orchestra.

John Cobb earned his Master of Music and Doctor of Music degrees in piano performance

from Northwestern University, where he also participated in master classes with the duo-piano

team Vronsky and Babin and also Paul Badura-Skoda and Vladimir Ashkenazy.

Dr. Cobb has taught at the Chicago City College, the University of Chicago, the State University

of New York and at Montreat College in North Carolina. He has presented workshops and

seminars at various schools and music centers throughout the U.S., including Florida State

University and California State University in Fresno. Dr. Cobb was artist-teacher at the

Adamant Summer Music School for pianists in Vermont for 15 seasons. For 12 years he was a

judge for the annual piano competition in New York City sponsored by the New York State

Council for the Arts, where he also served as a grant panelist.

He has also judged the Young Artists and Allied Arts competitions in Chicago, in which he won

first prizes in his student years. He maintains a teaching studio in Asheville and Hendersonville.

Dr. Cobb is the Artist-in-Residence for Freeburg Pianos and is currently taking students of all

ages including adults. 828-551-3810 jcobb227@bellsouth.net

Performance by Dr. John Cobb and Christopher TavernierBoth are direct musical descendants of Franz Liszt

Preserving the Musical Lineage ofFranz Liszt

Christopher’s first love is the piano, and he has a great desire to be a concert pianist.

He began his studies at the age of six. Franz Liszt is his all-time favorite composer.

Christopher’s repertoire contains many works by Liszt, of whom he is a direct musical

descendant through his teacher, Dr. John Cobb. Through their studies and performances

together they are “Preserving the Musical Lineage of Franz Liszt.”

Dr. Cobb, a semifinalist in the Third International Van Cliburn Piano Competition, is an

international performer and recording artist known for his broad interpretive range and

technical command. Dr. Cobb studied with Claudio Arrau, whose teacher was a pupil of

Franz Liszt. Throughout his career, Claudio Arrau (1903-1991) was renowned throughout

the world as one of the supreme keyboard masters of the century.

Franz Liszt was a student of Czerny, who in turn was a pupil of Ludwig van Beethoven.

Hence the musical lineage actually extends from Beethoven to Christopher Tavernier.

Piano Music

Liszt wrote a great deal of music for the piano, some of which was later revised and

consequently exists in a number of versions. In addition to original piano music, he also

made many transcriptions of the works of other composers and wrote works based on

national themes.

At the age of 19 Liszt first heard the phenomenal violinist Paganini perform, and he

immediately set out to re-invent and expand piano technique, just as Paganini had done

for the violin. The result was a completely new sound and approach to the keyboard,

exemplified in his Paganini Etudes and Transcendental Etudes. The three collections of

Annees de Pelerinage (“Years of Pilgrimage”) stem from the years of travel with Marie d’Agoult,

the first volume evoking memories of Switzerland and the second containing impressions from

Italian art and literature. The final volume is from Liszt’s late period when he lived in Rome

and was heavily involved with the Church.

The 10 pieces in Harmonies Poetiques et Religieuses, written between 1845 and 1852, are

the product of the composer’s religious meditations. His religious inclinations are also evident

in the Legends of 1863, the first one representing Saint Francis of Assisi preaching to the birds

and the second one Saint Francis de Paolo walking on the waves. The remarkable Variations

on Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen, based on a theme from Bach’s B Minor Mass, mourns the

death of his elder daughter Blandine.

The Fantasia and Fugue on the letters of “Bach” (B flat, A, C, H, the last being B natural in

English notation) was written for organ and then transcribed for the piano. Liszt wrote one

piano sonata. Striking in its innovative form and expressive power, the Sonata stands as

one of the greatest monuments in piano literature.

The Hungarian Rhapsodies, comprising 19 pieces composed over many years, are based

on a form of art music familiar in Hungary and fostered by gypsy musicians. The Rapsodie

Espagnole makes use of the well-known la folia theme, used by Corelli and many other

Baroque composers, and the traditional jota aragonesa.

Transcriptions of his own orchestral and choral compositions include a famous piano version

of the first of his four Mephisto Waltzes, works reflective of the legends that had once dogged

Paganini concerning diabolical assistance in performance. Of the many other transcriptions for

piano, those of the nine Beethoven symphonies are among the most remarkable. There are

also a large number of operatic transcriptions and fantasies. These include the Norma Fantasy,

based on Bellini’s opera Norma, and a dozen or so based on the operas of his friend and

son-in-law Richard Wagner.

Sacred Choral Music

Although associated primarily with instrumental music, piano works and orchestral

symphonic poems, Liszt also wrote a quantity of sacred choral music. This ranges from his

patriotic oratorio The Legend of Saint Elisabeth to a whole range of liturgical and devotional

works in which he sought to reform Catholic Church music from the prevailing sentimentality

of the period. Perhaps the greatest of these is his oratorio Christus.

Organ Music

Although his skill as an organist could not quite match his abilities as a pianist, Liszt

nevertheless took a strong interest in the organ and contributed to the repertoire of the

instrument with works that make substantial demands on technical virtuosity.

Christopher Tavernier (b. 2000)Student of Dr. John Cobb

Christopher is thirteen years old and in the

seventh grade at Hendersonville Middle School

in Hendersonville, NC. He loves the arts, reading,

writing stories and playing chess and has two

brothers and one sister.

Christopher is a member of the “National Junior

Beta Club,” honoring his outstanding character

and academic achievement. In addition to being an

honors student and a part of the AIG (Academically

and Intellectually Gifted) program in Mathematics

and Reading, he was selected for the Duke University

Talent Identification Program, placing above the 95th

percentile nationally. Additionally,

Christopher was nominated to attend the National Young Scholars Program (NYSP). He is

planning to attend the Blue Ridge Early College Program as a ninth grader so he can continue to

develop his advanced academic studies and his music career under the guidance of Dr. Kevin

Ayesh.

Christopher’s first love is the piano, and he is now realizing his dream to be a great concert

pianist. He will be making his debut as the youngest concert pianist in North Carolina this Fall.

Christopher will be performing Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No.1 in B Flat Minor, Opus 23 as

the guest performing artist and will be opening the Tar River Philharmonic Orchestra’s Fall

Season this October 24th

at the “Dunn Center for the Performing Arts” at Wesleyan College in

Rocky Mount, North Carolina.

Christopher began his piano studies at the age of six. His favorite composer is Franz Liszt, and

he is proud to be a direct musical descendant of Liszt. Christopher’s repertoire contains many

works by Franz Liszt. His teacher Dr. Cobb, a semifinalist in the Third International Van Cliburn

Piano Competition, is an international performer and recording artist. Together they will

preserve the musical heritage of Franz Liszt.

Christopher is also a member of the Asheville

Area Piano Forum, where he enjoys performing

on a regular basis. Christopher continues to

perform in many other venues and competitions.

He has won many honors and awards and looks

forward to the day when he can play with the

New York Philharmonic. 828-707-2604

waller_ka@yahoo.com

MUSICAL LINEAGE

Musical lineage is analogous to, but of course different from biological lineage. The analogy lies in the fact that we are all

largely formed by our early training and experiences. As we grow, the choices we make, or are made on our behalf when

we are younger, have a large impact on our development. In the case of music, this can have a lasting effect on the kind

of musicians we become, our particular set of skills, and how we teach the students who later come to us for training.

All piano teachers have a certain amount of training behind them. The teacher or teachers they have studied with

constitute their musical lineage, although often that concept is not stressed until the highest level of advancement has

been achieved. Sometimes pianists avoid that kind of thinking, particularly if they are rugged individualists who are mostly

self-taught. Sometimes a pianist will limit the concept to naming his or her major teacher, who may be highly respected in

the field. Yet in the bio of an extraordinary performer, we almost always see a number of such teachers listed, implying at

least some influence from each and every one of those great names. In a sense, the more great names, the better! This is

justified by the argument that if we take what we can from a range of great artists, we can better assemble our own

individual style. There is indeed truth in this, but it is equally true that working primarily within a particular musical

lineage conveys great benefits, particularly if that lineage has one or more musical immortals in it.

An obvious benefit is in PR value. That has nothing to do with music, true, but it has a lot to do with people’s interest

in hearing you play, or in becoming your student. And although it makes good PR, it is not a false value, because a lot

of the tangible and intangible musical traits of the lineage are being expressed when you perform or teach. You cannot

help having been formed by these influences, and you cannot help passing them on in many subtle ways. There are a

number of wonderful musical lineages that many pianists can claim. The majority of them probably extend back three

“generations” to Franz Liszt or Theodor Leschetizky, the two most popular master teachers of the Nineteenth Century.

Their teaching styles were quite different, as were there accomplishments, personalities and musical philosophies,

and their students inevitably reflected these differences and passed them on, colored of course by the prisms of

their own personalities.

One prominent example the influence of lineage is the late, great Van Cliburn. His mother, Rildia Bee O’Bryan Cliburn,

was a professional pianist and teacher who had studied with Arthur Friedheim, a student of Franz Liszt and a great pianist

in her own right. Cliburn’s mother was his only teacher from early childhood until he departed for the Juilliard School

after graduating high school. During his growing up years, he often had a piano lesson every day, and thoroughly

absorbed the musical and technical approach of the Liszt/Friedheim/O’Bryan lineage. When Cliburn enrolled at Juilliard,

his new teacher was the famous pedagogue Rosina Lhevinne, who introduced him to the traditions of the Russian school

of pianism. But Cliburn never developed the brilliant, flashy “Juilliard sound.” His warm, richly colored piano tone became

a trademark of his unique style, which he credited to his mother’s teaching. Writers have commented on the similarity

between Cliburn’s “golden tone” and that of his lineage predecessor Arthur Friedheim. Listening to recordings of other

students of Liszt, one can sense, even through the antiquated sound production, a common tonal and musical influence

that must have come from the Master himself.

Franz Liszt, probably the most famous and influential musician of the Nineteenth Century, had the added advantage of

having studied with Carl Czerny when he was a boy. Czerny was well known as Beethoven’s student, protégé and friend.

Liszt’s father, Adam Liszt, knew what he was doing when he brought his son to Vienna to meet Beethoven and then

become Czerny’s student. That made young Liszt number three in the lineage of the most famous composer in Europe –

number four, if you count Beethoven’s sometime teacher, Joseph Haydn. Although his study with Czerny was relatively

brief, Liszt remained a close friend and supporter of Czerny throughout his life. He revered Beethoven as a supreme

genius and paid tribute to him by arranging many of his works (including all nine symphonies) for the piano. He performed

his piano works and later conducted many of Beethoven’s orchestral works as well. So Liszt’s disciples and students had

not only their teacher’s overwhelming gifts and accomplishments to inspire them, but also the great figure of Beethoven

looming over them all!

Liszt was famous for many things. He composed nonstop, constantly expanding his range. He arranged musical events

and sponsored deserving young musicians. He wrote articles, and was the co-author of the first biography of his friend

Chopin and also the first book on the music of the gypsies. But to the world of pianists and piano playing Liszt is most

interesting for his innovations and expansion of piano technique. By following the example of the astonishing violinist

Paganini when he was only 20, Liszt invented a new approach to playing the piano that transformed the keyboard into

an orchestra. He also worked obsessively at developing his own technique so that he could demonstrate and exploit

this new approach.

According to contemporary accounts, Liszt must have been the greatest pianist the world has known. True greatness is

hard to pass on, but in his later years when he was teaching the students flocking to him from Europe and America, Liszt

passed something on to them that made their playing and their teaching extremely potent. Even Martin Krause, who

showed up in Liszt’s very last years, was inspired to pass on Liszt’s philosophy of life and music, and – unbelievably – Liszt’s

piano technique – to his young student Claudio Arrau. Mr. Arrau was in turn inspired to measure up to Liszt’s example

during his long career as one of the world’s greatest concert pianists. And like Liszt, Arrau took students in his later years,

passing on the Liszt philosophy and piano technique, called by then the “Arrau Technique.” And like Liszt, Arrau didn’t

charge a penny for those valuable lessons.

Franz Liszt(1811-1886)

Franz Liszt was the son of a steward in the service of

the Esterhazy family, patrons of the great composer

Franz Joseph Haydn who died just two years before

Liszt was born. He came into the world in 1811 at

Raiding in Hungary.

Due to his startling musical gifts, at the age of 10 he

moved with his family to Vienna, where he took piano

lessons from Czerny (Beethoven’s student and close

friend) and composition lessons from Salieri. Two

years later, in 1823, he moved with his family, now

impoverished, to Paris, effectively ending his formal music training. Still a child, he rapidly

gained a reputation as the greatest pianist in Europe, and at the same time pursued his

serious compositional interests.

At age 19, Liszt came under the influence of the phenomenal violinist Paganini, and

he turned his attention to developing a similarly transcendental technique that could be

applied to the piano. When he was 24 he left Paris with his mistress, the Countess d’Agoult,

with whom he traveled widely for the next few years, his reputation as a pianist of astonishing

powers preceding him. Eventually he separated from the Countess d’Agoult, the mother of

his three children, and in 1848 he settled in Weimar as Director of Music. His companion at

the time (and for the next 20 years) was Princess Caroline Sayn-Wittgenstein, who also served

as his muse. She encouraged him to retire from his constant touring as a performer so that

he could fully realize his potential as a composer. In turning his attention to composition he

began advancing the language of music, and in the process invented a new form:

the Symphonic Poem.

In 1861 Liszt moved to Rome, where he took several orders of the priesthood and found

expression for his long-held religious leanings. From 1869 he returned regularly to Weimar,

where he had many pupils from around the world, and later accepted similar obligations in

Budapest, where he was regarded as a national hero. Liszt died in Bayreuth, Germany in 1886,

three years after the death of his son-in-law Richard Wagner. As a pianist Liszt had no equal,

and as a composer he indicated to the younger generations of musicians the new course that

music was to take.

Orchestral Music

Liszt’s symphonic poems met strong criticism from champions of “pure” music, who took

exception to his attempts to translate into musical terms the greatest works of literature.

The best known of the 13 symphonic poems are Les Preludes, based on Lamartine, and

Tasso and Mazeppa, both based on Lord Byron. He wrote two large symphonies: the Faust

Symphony, based on Goethe’s poetic drama, and the Dante Symphony, inspired by Dante’s

Divine Comedy. He also composed two piano concertos, and, among other works for piano

and orchestra, the chilling Totentanz (Dance of Death) and the Hungarian Fantasy.

Performing Artists

Dr. John Cobb & Christopher TavernierMasterwork Lineage Series - August/September 2013

It is our pleasure and privilege to serve the Western Carolina Area. Freeburg Pianos provides

new and pre-owned pianos for sale and complete related services. For over thirty-five years,

Keith Freeburg (Registered Piano Technician with The Piano Technicians Guild) has been

serving piano students, teachers, concert artists, church and home musicians. His sensitivity

and passion for creating instruments that respond to individual needs has delighted thousands

of discerning musicians.

We are the Authorized

Perzina and Mason & Hamlin Dealer for

New Grand and Vertical Pianos

We are proud to offer the full lines of Perzina and Mason & Hamlin pianos. Our range of new

pianos are perfect for home musicians, churches, concert halls, universities, conservatories, and

other institutions. We also have a wide selection of quality pre-owned pianos.

Piano Services:

* Piano Upgrades

* Free Official Appraisals, Written Evaluations

* New and Select Pre-owned Piano Sales including Mason & Hamlin, Perzina,

Steinway, Kawai, Yamaha, and Baldwin

* Aural Tuning: Equal Temperament or Equal Beating Victorian Temperament

* Regulation, Voicing and Repair on location or in our local piano shop

* Complete Piano Detailing

* Complete Restoration in our local shop including restringing, new actions, and

Case refinishing

* PianoDisc Sales, Installation and Service

* Dampp-Chaser Systems Installation

* Locator Services for “Hard-to-Find” Pianos

Please visit us at www.freeburgpianos.com

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Freeburg PianosBlue Ridge Plaza

2314 Asheville Hwy, Hendersonville, NC 28791

PH: 828-697-0110

Welcome to the World Masterwork Series

We are going to take you on a spectacular musical journey through

Liszt’s brilliant compositional career. It begins with Etudes, or studies,

which were Liszt's earliest interest in life - he began writing them as a

child. His greatest etudes are the 12 Transcendental Etudes and 6

Paganini Etudes; we will have a selection of both. Paganini was the

world's greatest violinist, and is still a legend. He inspired Liszt to

become the world's greatest pianist, and these Etudes are based on

Paganini's music and also are a tribute to him. Liszt was also inspired

to become the nineteenth century's most influential and progressive

composer. In the process, he invented the Symphonic Poem, an

orchestral work which is based upon a story. Our performance

includes two of these works; pieces which Liszt wrote specifically for

the piano, and which he based upon religious subjects.

Liszt also wrote piano music in traditional forms, one of which will be

played. Among Liszt's many pioneering activities was the celebration

of ethnic music - he wrote the first book on the music of the Gypsies.

He transcribed five authentic Hungarian folk songs for piano, and

intended for the text to be read aloud.

“No composer ever arranged so much music for the piano.” Two

song arrangements will be performed before the final tribute. Liszt

was also prolific at creating original compositions based upon popular

operas. In the true Lisztian tradition, the program concludes with one

of the most spectacular of his sixty five operatic paraphrases, a

composition written for two pianos.

Freeburg Pianos has made this possible by bringing in two grand

pianos. These pianos will be tuned to the Equal Beating Victorian

Temperament… Through the music of Franz Liszt, we will restore the

“Lost Colors and Sounds” of the Romantic Period.

Freeburg Pianos

Authorized Perzina and Mason & Hamlin Dealer (828.697.0110)

World Masterwork SeriesPreserving the Musical Lineage of Franz Liszt

Performance by: Dr. John Cobb and Christopher Tavernier

Franz Liszt (1811-1886)

Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist.It was said by his contemporaries that he was the most technically advanced pianist of his age,

and in the 1840’s he was considered by someto be perhaps the greatest pianist of all time, even to this day.

A Lineage Production by: Freeburg Pianos